Delivery and conditions

Please order your Japan Rail Pass at least 10 days before your departure.Please do not forget to take your Rail Pass Exchange Order(s) with you when you go to Japan!
To get your actual Rail Pass in Japan, you need to go along to one of the JR (Japan Rail) Travel Service Centres and hand in the “Exchange Coupon” part of the Rail Pass Exchange Order you bought. It must be the original. So please do not forget to take your Exchange Order with you.

IMPORTANT FOR JAPANESE NATIONALS:

Japanese nationals can buy and use the nationwide Japan Rail Pass, but in order to qualify, written proof of residence in a country outside Japan for 10 years or more (Certificate of Overseas Residence) will be required. Please see the official information on japanrailpass.net (pdf in English).
In order for us to check this eligibility document, Japanese nationals are requested to visit our office in person to collect the Rail Pass.

We are unable to process and dispatch Japan Rail Pass Exchange Orders on UK public holidays.
Please order your Rail Pass Exchange Order at least 10 days before travel, in order to receive it in good time. The earliest departure date you can input as your date of departure from the UK during the buying process is 10 days from today’s date.

ROYAL MAIL 1st Class post:

This is the default delivery method for addresses in the UK. The consignment is not tracked, and delivery time depends on the Royal Mail post service.

SPECIAL DELIVERY (UK) Next Day:

Guarantees delivery the next working day by 1pm*.
All items delivered by Royal Mail Special Delivery must be signed for. Please note that you must be available to sign for your package when it is due to be delivered. If you are not at home, Royal Mail will leave a card so that you can arrange for your package to be re-delivered. We will email you the Royal Mail tracking number for your package but sometimes the information about the status of the delivery on Royal Mail’s website can lag behind the actual progress due to Royal Mail’s tracking system.
Example 1: Order received by 1pm on Monday, dispatched that day by Royal Mail Special Delivery Next Day service, arrives the next working day (Tuesday).
Example 2: Order received after 1pm on Monday, dispatched the following day (Tue) by Royal Mail Special Delivery Next Day service, arrives the next day (Wed).
Special Delivery (UK) Guaranteed Saturday Delivery is available for orders made on Friday up to 1pm. If this option is not chosen, Special Delivery Next Day will deliver on the next working day ie. Monday.
* To addresses in the UK except northern Scotland, the Isle of Man, Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands.

COURIER:

For delivery to European countries, we advise you to choose the Courier Delivery option. This means that your delivery can be tracked. Normal air mail is not tracked.
For delivery to the “Rest of World” category, we advise you to choose the Courier Delivery option. This means that your delivery can be tracked. Normal air mail is not tracked. Alternatively, you may find it useful to check on japanrailpass.net to find any JTB office nearer to you which sells the Japan Rail Pass.
If you have other delivery requirements, please place your Rail Pass order with our staff by phone (tel. 020 8267 1605 Mon-Fri 09:00-17:30) who will be pleased to advise. You can also contact us by email on info@japanspecialist.co.uk.

COLLECTION IN PERSON

from our office in Hammersmith, London W6: this is of course possible, at no charge. In order to avoid delays, please buy your pass online and allow at least 2 hours or wait for our confirmation email before visiting our office to pick up your pass(es). We are located on the 3rd Floor, No.1 Farriers Yard, 77 Fulham Palace Road, not far from Hammersmith tube station. Location map

PRICING

Japan Rail Passes are priced in Japanese Yen, but must be sold in local currency. We offer prices in GBP Sterling for Japan Rail Passes to the public on our website and by other means. The GBP Sterling prices are set taking into account actual Exchange rates between GBP Sterling and Japanese Yen prevailing at the time, and other factors such as predicted movements of exchange rates, and competitors’ prices. The prices we offer for Japan Rail Passes are reviewed regularly, and can change at any time. When a Rail Pass is purchased through our website, we guarantee to supply the Exchange order(s) for the Rail Pass(es) purchased at the price(s) paid at the time of booking.

LOST IN TRANSIT

Rail Pass Exchange Orders lost in transit cannot be re-issued. Another Exchange Order must be purchased.
The original Exchange Order which was lost in transit will be fully refunded, after the 3-month validity of the document has expired.

CANCELLATION CHARGES

If returned to us unused within 12 months of issue, a Japan Rail Pass Exchange Order can be refunded less a cancellation charge of 10% of the face value.

1) The JAPAN RAIL PASS is valid only for the person whose name appears on the pass. The user must be a foreign national visiting Japan with the entry status of Temporary Visitor. Please note also that the pass is valid only when it has a JAPAN RAIL PASS ticket attached.2) When you begin using your pass, present it to the attendant at a manned ticket gate. The attendant will apply a stamp in the space provided for official use. When passing through the gate, always present your pass to the attendant so that the period of validity is visible.3) While using JAPAN RAIL PASS, you must carry your passport and be prepared to present it to a station attendant or car conductor if requested.4) The JAPAN RAIL PASS is valid for reserved and non-reserved ordinary car travel on all Japan Railways (JR) Group Shinkansen “bullet trains” (except for the “Nozomi” and “Mizuho” services), limited express trains, express trains, and local trains (Green Car passes are valid for Green Car travel) and the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit system). The pass is also valid for travel on the JR Miyajima Ferry between Miyajima and Miyajimaguchi Station, buses operated by JR Hokkaido Bus, JR Tohoku Bus, JR Bus Kanto, JR Tokai Bus, West Japan JR Bus, Chugoku JR Bus, JR Shikoku Bus, JR Kyushu Bus, and the Tokyo Monorail. However, please note that JAPAN RAIL PASS is not valid for travel on JR Group buses that travel on expressways and some local bus routes.
* The JAPAN RAIL PASS is not valid for travel on the “Nozomi” and “Mizuho” Shinkansen services (including non-reserved seats on both).
To board those services, you must pay in full for the basic fare and the limited express charge.
* The routes covered by JAPAN RAIL PASS are subject to change.
* When using JAPAN RAIL PASS to travel on JR Group transport services that extend through lines operated by companies other than JR Rail, JR Miyajima Ferry, JR Bus (excluding some routes such as expressway bus lines), and the Tokyo Monorail, you must pay separately for the fare and other charges of the distance traveled on such sections. However, no separate fare or charges are required when such travel extends through the following segments without stopover.
(1) The Aoimori Railway between Hachinohe and Aomori, Aomori and Noheji, or Hachinohe and Noheji. (Valid only for use on ordinary trains)
(2) The IR Ishikawa Railway between Kanazawa and Tsubata.
(3) The Ainokaze Toyama Railway between Toyama and Takaoka. (Valid only for use on ordinary trains)5) If you want to use reserved seating, be sure to get seat reservations before boarding (no additional payment needed). To obtain a reserved-seat ticket, present JAPAN RAIL PASS at the ticket office (Midori-no-madoguchi) at a JR station, a Travel Service Center, or a sales office of a major travel agency. You can use non-reserved seating with JAPAN RAIL PASS alone. Please note, however, that some trains do not have non-reserved seating. Also, if you wish to travel in a private compartment on a Shinkansen or a limited express train, you will be required to pay the limited express charge for the private compartment, as well as the Green Car charge if the private compartment is a Green Car accommodation. An extra charge is also required if you wish to travel in a sleeping car, a DX Green Car or Gran Class accommodation. If you ride in a Green Car using an ordinary car pass, you will be required to pay the Green Car charge, as well as the limited or regular express service charge. (No extra charge applies when using a Green Car JAPAN RAIL PASS.) You must also pay an extra charge in advance to travel on a local train requiring a numbered ticket or a liner ticket. JAPAN RAIL PASS does not allow you to change to a reserved seat or sleeping car after boarding.6) If you use non-reserved seating, or if you travel in an ordinary car using a Green Car pass, no refund shall be paid for passenger fare or other charges.7) The JAPAN RAIL PASS can be used only within its validity period.8) The JAPAN RAIL PASS cannot be exchanged for other types of passes or tickets. Nor can the validity period of the pass be changed.9) Please note that JAPAN RAIL PASS cannot be reissued in the event that it is lost or stolen.10) In principle, a refund for JAPAN RAIL PASS is available at all JAPAN RAIL PASS exchange offices, provided that the application for refund is made before the starting date of the validity period. You will be refunded the value of the pass in yen, less a 10% handling fee.11) Once you have started using JAPAN RAIL PASS, the validity period cannot be extended, nor will any refund be issued, even if trains and other qualifying transportation services are suspended or delayed for any reason. Moreover, the JR Group will not bear additional costs due to changes in your route, such as alternative transportation costs or accommodation charges.12) In addition to the terms and conditions set forth above, when using JAPAN RAIL PASS you must obey the JR Group’s regulations, terms and conditions, and the laws of Japan.13) The use of JAPAN RAIL PASS in violation of the terms and conditions above or the JR Group’s regulations, terms and conditions may result in the invalidation and confiscation of the pass, as well as assessment of a penalty amounting to twice the basic fares and charges for all transportation services for which the pass was used.14) The official terms and conditions of JAPAN RAIL PASS are written in Japanese, and the text of the Japanese version shall be given priority of interpretation in the event of questions regarding transportation conditions that may arise regarding conditions written in other languages.(*The details above are current as of September 2015 and are subject to change.)

CHILD AGE:

The eligibility for child price (up to and including 11 years old) is taken from the date on which the Rail Pass Exchange Order is purchased.
Example: The Rail Pass Exchange Order is being issued on 1st April, the child’s 12th birthday will be on 10th April, and the Exchange Order will be presented in Japan on 15th May, for use in June. As the child is 11 on the date the Exchange Order is issued, the child fare can be applied.